Saturday, April 11^th, 2026 Sneaker Ball Venue West Chicago: The Big Reveal of the Whitney Young High School 50^th Anniversary Yarn Bombing

When I woke up that morning, I couldn’t even believe we made it this far and I thanked God for every part of it. I had to get up super early because I started school at Northeastern Illinois University in their teacher certification program in January 2026. I had to meet with one of my graduate group members for a project that was due in a couple weeks. Two of my coworkers who were Whitney Young High School teachers wrote letters of recommendation for me mentioning the yarn bombing. I spent most of the late evening and early morning emailing, texting and making social media posts about the yarn bombing to family, friends, coworkers, quilting circles, knitting circles and anyone I knew.

I was told to get to Venue West in Chicago for the Whitney Young High School sneaker ball by 5 pm. I left early, but Chicago traffic is brutal. I arrived at 5:12 pm, but I did call and leave a voicemail message letting them know I was on my way. I had to park right outside the entrance to Venue West. The yarn bombing matched the front door entrance.  

I received help from a current schoolteacher who crocheted granny squares that went on the trunk. She also has her own long arm sewing machine business that she runs from her home. I am in numerous sewing and knitting circles. She and I are members of Needles and Threads Quilt Guild on the South Side of Chicago. A picture of our quilt guild is in the book, “Communion of the Spirits” by Roland L. Freeman who curated the “Quilts for Obama: An Exhibit Celebrating the Inauguration of Our 44th President” for the Smithsonian Museum.

“Try folding the yarn bombing like a quilt,” she offered. “It will make it easier to install.” And her suggestions proved to be invaluable.

Thank you.

We spread the yarn bombing across my car. People’s reactions were incredible:

“WHAT THE !*@#?”

“HA HA HA HA!!!!!”

“That’s nice!”

“OH MY GOD! My mother knits! She’s going to be so excited to see this!”

“That is hilarious!”

I walked around the car, channeling my inner “Wheel of Fortune” Vanna White persona (no pun intended), explaining the story behind the yarn bombing, showing people the design that was made and the art quilt I made on my iPhone, then pointing out who knitted, crocheted and/or weaved which section of the car. People took pictures, video, and mostly laughed hysterically, which, aside from fundraising for the school, was exactly the point. The food was great. The student jazz band was mesmerizing. Park and Ride Band, the band comprised of Whitney Young High School parents, was amazing. I loved the Frankie Beverly and Maze cover song. In the end,  learning is fun. Fundraising should be fun as well.

The kids are worth it.

Eight Days Leading Up to the Whitney Young High School 50^th Anniversary Yarn Bombing

A member of Studio Art Quilt Associates opened up her home to me to finish the Whitney Young High School 50^th anniversary yarn bombing. My logic brain said, “What are you doing?1?! There are serial killers in Chicago!” My heart and spirit said, “This is fun! Okedoke!”

She found out about it through one of her neighbors who was a quilter and had also done the exact same thing. We literally put the last stitch in at 6 pm the night before the installation.

People had seen us in the street, placing an oversized orange and blue afghan on my car, measuring it out. People slowed down to a near stop in the middle of rush hour traffic to watch us. We heard people say, “That is so pretty!”

People have asked me, “Where did you do all of this?” First, I was not the only one who did this. Whitney Young High School opened its doors on Wednesday, September 3^rd, 1975. Technically, 50 years was Wednesday, September 3^rd, 2025. We had until September 2026 to make good on this project. In June 2025, I sent inquiries to local yarn shops, quilt and knitting circles, and I placed postings on the internet. I asked for 10-inch by 10-inch knitted, crocheted, woven, embroidered and/or quilted in orange, blue and/or in the image of a dolphin. I worked with Friends of Whitney Young, the fundraising committee, who informed me that the big reveal was Saturday, April 11^th, 2026.

My yarn bombers were relieved.

There were a lot of retired teachers, current schoolteachers, school bus drivers, librarians, retired lawyers who had volunteered with Barack and Michelle Obama when they lived in Chicago, city workers, high school students who responded and participated. For the people who graciously opened their homes, their kitchen tables were the perfect size for a good old-fashioned knitting circle. Their kitchen chairs held the parts of the afghan that we had finished knitting and/or crocheting.

The driving dolphins on the windshield was done by a retired French teacher and president of Windy City Knitting. She had also yarn bombed a car and offered advice. There was a famous yarn bomber who lived out of state out East and learned about it. I sent orange, blue and variegated blue yarn to her in the mail. She crocheted the hood in orange and blue granny squares and sent them back to me in the mail. Those who were comfortable knitting or crocheting a part of the car did so.

Initially, the trunk, hood, back doors, front doors, back windshield, front windshield and roof were either knitted and/or crocheted. Those who were more reserved and/or overwhelmed (and understandably so!) did a 10-inch by 10-inch squares. Some people did one 10-inch by 10-inch square. Some people did 20 or more 10 inch by 10-inch squares. We had one person weave her 10 inch by 10-inch square.

In the end, every effort was helpful and more than appreciated.

Whitney Young High School alumni, their families and their friends were very involved. Some of them were not aware that Whitney Young High School was celebrating their 50^th anniversary. I let them know there was still time to be involved in the yarn bombing festivities. One person ate lunch with Michelle Obama in high school when she was a student at Whitney Young High School. There was a Whitney Young High School parents who owned her own yarn shop and had yarn bombed a car before. She was a treasure trove of information.

Secondly, there was never a real designated place where the Whitney Young high School 50^th anniversary yarn bombing took place. People did this in their homes, on the street, in knitting, crochet and sewing circles, and, like I said, out of state.

This was my very first-time yarn bombing a car! Yikes!

I will admit I didn’t know what I was doing, even when I had a book about yarn bombing in front of me. This is more of a reflection about me and not the authors of the book. I will say I learned as I went along. As mostly a quilter, I had a “The Gees Bend Quilters go yarn bombing” type of idea in mind.

Considering I did not use a gauge swatch, and my knitting was very loose, and I needed to drop down a needle size OR get thicker yarn, but I didn’t, this threw a lot off in terms of measurements (and I am so sorry about that!) but, I think I may have gotten the effect I wanted.

YES! I can hear the knit, crochet and quilt police coming for me!

Still, for 10 months, I knitted at home, in my car, at work between classes with my patient, in sewing circles, in doctor’s offices, and in restaurants. Many people walked up to me and asked, “What are you doing?” I explained what yarn bombing was, showed them pictures on my iPhone, shared profiles of famous yarn bombers and stated this was for charity. Even the art department at Whitney Young High School gave presentations about yarn bombing to the students. I placed the administrations capital “W,” capital “Y” and number “50”design right on top of the knitting that I did. The other parts I knitted draped so much that we used them over our bodies as afghans when we were trying to measure the yarn bombing against the car. Did I mention it is cold in Chicago? My afghan contributions helped when we were measuring the yarn bombing on my car!

I lived. I learned. If nothing else, I found the process to be very relaxing.

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO PARTICIPATED AND SPREAD THE WORD!!!!

THIS WOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENDED WITHOUT ANY OF YOU!!! THANK YOU!

The Whitney Young High School 50^th Anniversary Design Started as an Art Quilt Banner

I took the drawing and made an art quilt banner first. There are a lot of banners in the gymnasium of Whitney Young High School. I felt it would be befitting to make the quilt look more like a banner.

The background was orange. The capital “W” and capital “Y” were blue. The number “50” had to be in either yellow or gold as I had been instructed. On the border of the quilt was dolphin fabric. The back of the quilt also had dolphin fabric and fabric resembling water. It looked like there was a school of dolphins swimming from the back of the quilt to the front of the quilt and into the orange background with the blue capital  “W,” the blue capital “Y,” and the gold number  “50.”  I received a ton of help from one of my sewing circles, Quilter’s Plus, from a woman who worked for years in a furniture store. She helped me center the letters and numbers.

The quilt was fun to make, but I felt there was something missing.

The Hubbard Street dance troupe gives art workshops around the city of Chicago. They suggest, as did my art quilt teacher, Sheila Frampton Cooper, writer Elizabeth Gilbert and late science fiction writer, Octavia Butler, to change your artistic medium or genre if you find yourself stuck or stymied in a project.

I felt the design would transfer from drawing to fabric to fiber quite easily, making a ton of artistic movement forward as a yarn bombing.